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Man deemed too fat to fly or travel by train gets a ferry ride home

Service that connects England to France and Belgium declined to allow Kevin Chenais on board because of safety rules governing travel through the Channel Tunnel.

Kevin Chenais, who was deemed too fat to fly, arrives in London on Tuesday. (AFP / AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

By Danica KirkaThe Associated Press

Wed., Nov. 20, 2013

LONDON—He’s been turned down by planes, trains and even a cruise ship in his quest to return home — and his family says it’s because he has been deemed too fat to travel. Now Frenchman Kevin Chenais’ long and fitful journey is coming to an end.

A ferry company accepted Chenais on Wednesday for a trip across the English Channel, one of the last obstacles to his homecoming in the French town of Ferney-Voltaire.

Chenais, who weighs 500 pounds, says he has been repeatedly refused transport over the past two weeks as he sought to return from the United States, where he was receiving medical treatment.

On Wednesday, P&O Ferries offered to take him in an ambulance aboard the Spirit of Britain, the final hurdle keeping him from his home near the Swiss border.

“I am absolutely tired,” the 22-year-old said as he slumped over in his mobility scooter just before being loaded into the ambulance.

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Chenais’ mother said her son was discriminated against because of his weight.

“It’s not the fault of my son to be big. He has a genetic illness,” said Christina Chenais. “We are very happy to go home after this long, distressing and traumatic situation.”

The odyssey began when British Airways refused to honour his return ticket from the United States, where he had been receiving medical care for a hormone imbalance.

“When we talked about this problem with British Airways that Kevin was too fat . . . (they said) abandon any intention of coming back to France,” Kevin’s father, Rene, told RTL Radio. “From the fact of his incapacity, his obesity, he was not considered to be a normal being, but more like a problem.”

BA acknowledges it refused to let Chenais board the plane, but said confidentiality rules prevent it from saying why. BA insisted it does not discriminate against customers for any reason and that the airline provides the option of an extra seat to people who contact them with concerns about seat width.

“We respect the privacy of the customer so cannot comment on any changes in circumstance between arrival and departure dates,” the company said in a statement. British Airways declined to say what the changes in circumstance had been.

Chenais said Carnival Cruises also rejected his request for a cabin on a trans-Atlantic voyage. The company declined to comment.

Virgin Atlantic airlines stepped in to fly him to London, where he had planned to take the Eurostar train home. But Eurostar refused to allow him on board because of safety rules governing travel through the Channel Tunnel. The high-speed train that connects England to France and Belgium requires all passengers to have the ability to be safely evacuated — and Chenais’ lack of mobility made that impossible.

“This is a terrible situation,” Eurostar said in a statement. “Our heart goes out to Mr. Chenais and his family, who are understandably desperate to return home after being stranded in America.”

Eurostar paid for the family’s hotel room and worked with P&O to find a solution.

“It’s difficult to imagine the frustration that this gentleman has gone through,” P&O spokesman Chris Laming said in a statement. “But for us, it’s very straightforward as we are set up to carry people who have medical needs.”

Laming said Chenais and his family landed safely at the French port of Calais on Wednesday night.

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